2007-11-13

【The right and wrong in the net.】
Good morning. Did anyone hear the news about teenager in New York who hacked into the bank’s database and stole about 30,000 credit card numbers over the weekend? Hacking is related to the computer ethics. That is topic today.

Computer ethics deals with the properly use of information technology such is a computer in the internet. By properly use, I mean, socially responsible use. We will first talk about what ethical behavior is and how is surprise computer use.

First, I wanna make sure of the own what ethics is…anyone? Yes, John.
“It’s about right or wrong” Yes, OK. Jennifer.
“And it’s about being good person doing what’s right” Yes, Ethics includes both of these ideas.
It deals with moral judgments with what is acceptable or unacceptable to do.
And we learn the ideas about what is right and wrong from families or friends and from cultures relevant. Because difference is on background we may not always agree and what is wrong. However for our discussion today I will define for you what I mean by ethical action.

An ethical action is something someone does that benefits someone and doesn’t hurt anyone. So, for example, if you see a man dropped the money and you picked the money up and give it to him. This is the ethical action.

On the other hand, if you picked up the money and don’t give it back to the man. This benefits you, but hurts the man. This is not an ethical action. Now, what’s about computers?

What are the ethical boundaries for using computers on the internet? Most people agree that it is wrong to steal from the store. Would they also say it’s wrong to copy music files from the internet? Or, to take another example, most people agree that is wrong to open alone and to read a letter someone else’s. Would they also say it’s wrong to read someone else’s e-mail? In the past decade also, many more people studied using computers on the internet. So these issues have become important.

In 1992, the Computer Ethics Institute was founded in United-states. This is a research education and policy study group whose go is Chris Warner of the ethical issues that are likely to come up as technology develops.

One concept, the Computer Ethics Institute has developed is the Ten Commandments of computer ethics. These rules are important guidelines the institute thinks all computers users should follow.

Now, some of view may be Ten Commandments is the bible like the “Thou shalt not kill” or “thou shalt my father or my mother”. Ten Commandments of computer ethics have relevant same style of language use the Ten Commandments is from the bible. For example, the use the phrase “Thou shalt not”, “Thou shalt not” means “don’t” or “you shouldn’t”. Let’s look at the each commandment of all.

The first commandment says, thou shalt not use the computer to harm other people. Simple enough, right?

No.2, thou shalt not interfere with other people’s computer work. I enter pretense to mean don’t use the computers in any way that is fact or changed the work someone else’s doing, don’t move or edit someone else’s files without telling them.

No.3, thou shalt not snoop in other people’s files. To snoop means to try to find out something without another person knowing it. If you look at someone else’s files on the computer or read the e-mail, you are snooping. Respect other people’s privacy.

NO.4, thou shalt not use the computers to steal. There are situations on the Internet in which you have to decide if you are stealing or not, like downloading music files as I mend a real.

NO.5, thou shalt not use the computers to safe in that is on true. It is up to you to be true for your web-site, in your e-business, and in your e-mail.

NO.6, thou shalt not use the software for which you have not paid. In another words, if the software is free in the internet it’s OK to download and use it. However, it is not OK to copy software from a friend because you didn’t pay fault.

NO.7, thou shalt not use other people’s computer resource without telling them or without paying them. For example, you shouldn’t use someone else’s computer, password or internet connection without asking on the first.

NO.8, thou shalt not appropriate someone else’s ideas. Appropriate is spelled APPROPRIATE, it means to take words someone else load and say it yours. For example, you have to ride the report for the school. If you copy a term paper from the internet and hand in them. You are breaking the rule. Copy even the feel sentences of the internet and presenting image your own is breaking the rule.

NO.9, the nine to commandments says, thou shalt think about the social consequences of the program you are writing. Now, this surprises mostly to computers programmers. Social consequences mean is how the program you are writing might affect other in society. Could hacker possibly use your program to a legally gain access to a computer system? Skill for hacker’s can hack in the banks in the credit companies. They can alter accounts and steal your money. They can also create violence; they can cause billions of dollar’s damage of all wide.

NO.10, the Ten Commandments says, thou shalt always use a computer in ways that is spectacle of others. For examples, sending unfriendly e-mail to someone or about someone or creating web-site with negative messages, our example of breaking this rule.

OK, the Computer Ethics Institute has sent these guidelines to many large companies and to school acrossed in united-states. However, there is no way to enforce these rules.
Nevertheless, they would like to see school and particular you’d like these rules to help students develop on strong sentences of computer ethics. OK, any questions or come in this point?

“How we suppose to remember over the rules?”
Well, there are a lot of rules, but they all boil done a couple of principles respect and fairness. Respect up along to others and use resource fairly. Does it a help?
“Yeah I guess so.” Good, let’s go back to the ethics.

Increasingly, schools are seeing the students need to be talked computer ethics as part of this school’s curriculum. Some schools have come up with the acceptable use policies or rules about what is or isn’t OK first students to do the computer use.

This is how the Computer Ethics Institute would like to see schools utilizing the rules. Generally, it’s considerable on to steal someone else’s password or to read someone else’s e-mail. It’s also considered unacceptable in collage class with students to download a term paper off the internet and pretend that the he owns it load it. This is called “plagiarism”. And it’s good example of breaking the rule NO.8.

Students are prohibited to use the internet for research, but I instructed it in right information and own words and to explain where they got information. The ten rules a guideline force of the follow. These rules help us to be aware the ethical uses technology. Let’s stop here for today. Think about these rules this week, and we’ll talk more about them. And read the next 2 chapters for next week.